Naruto and the Chocolate Stealing Thief
by yamaihime
Summary: Naruto never had any luck when it came to making friends, even less so with the prettiest girl with lovely pink hair in Mr. Iruka's class. But all that is about to take a turn for the worse when a new rich kid with duck butt hair starts attending Naruto's kindergarten, stealing his girl's affection, stealing his friends and worst of all, stealing his chocolate?
1. The Valentines Chocolate Thief

**Full Summary: **Naruto never had any luck when it came to making friends, even less so with the prettiest girl with lovely pink hair in Mr. Iruka's class. But all that is about to take a turn for the worse when a new rich kid with duck butt hair starts attending Naruto's kindergarten, stealing his girl's affection, stealing his friends and worst of all, stealing his chocolate?

**Pairings:** SasuNaru

**Rating:** PG (K+)

**Warnings:** Pure, unadultered, sweet enough to give you toothache fluff, Sakura bashing if you squint.

**Ages: **

Naruto: 4

Sasuke: 5

Sakura: 5

Other children: 5

Iruka: 29

**Author's Note: **My first fanfic to ever upload! Hooray! I can't bring myself to write other fics so this will have to do for now.

**Second Author's Note:** Special thanks to my good friend **XxHeavenxSentxX** who made me interested and start writing fanfiction. This is for you.

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**Naruto and the Chocolate Stealing Thief**

_The Valentines Chocolate Thief**  
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**. . .**

It was the first day of kindergarten and Naruto was excited. Mr Iruka, his foster dad had said that Naruto would be starting his first day today, in a real classroom with other kids. He wouldn't have to take one or two weekly lessons at Konoha Orphanage anymore, now that he had a parent to look after him and especially when said parent was the teacher of Konoha Academy.

But more than that, Naruto wanted to make real friends. Everyone at the Orphanage, especially the adults, would make sure he wasn't included in any of the activities and events the Orphanage held for fun or even for charity. Ever since he could remember, Naruto had felt secluded and lonely in the Orphanage, as if everyone there wanted him gone, that he was a disease that needed to be wiped out and cleansed. The stares some of the adult workers gave him were what hurt and annoyed him the most.

Thus, the only thing for an ignored four year old to do to punish the mean caretakers who weren't doing their jobs properly was to make the biggest nuisance of himself as physically and mentally possible. Naruto's pranks in the Orphanage were legendary, if he did say so himself. So much so, that when potential parents would show an interest in him, the caretakers would warn them against it, calling him a chronic troublemaker. This would only heighten Naruto's tomfoolery.

Naruto would never forget the day, when one caretaker had shooed away another young couple hoping to adopt the adorable blond, that he had poured glue on all the seats in the staff room and listened to the wails of the adults as they walked around with their butts literally glued to their chairs. He would also never forget the dye incident where he replaced everyone's shampoo with blue dye, making everyone look like those weird characters with white pants that went on TV every afternoon. His best prank among all the others was for sure the day when he had peltered water balloons filled with paint from the huge Oak tree in the park, during a fundraiser for the Orphanage. Amidst the crying children, the screaming adults and the caretakers screaming at other staff to find Naruto, Naruto had met his foster father Mr. Iruka completely by accident.

The paint balloons had made his hands and the tree branch he was on so slippery that he fell off the tree. It happened so quickly. Naruto was trying to grab onto the helium balloons near the tree to break his fall because as far as he knew, helium balloons would enable him to get away from the chaos that was steadily getting closer to him. He missed the balloons by a long shot and instead fell on something soft. He blinked away the dizziness and when he opened his eyes fully, he was greeted by a few concerned parents, many seething caretakers, a few surprised kids and a kind smiling tan face with crinkly eyes and a large scar across his nose.

Despite the caretaker's protests, the kind man with the large scar, who told Naruto his name was Mr. Iruka, had adopted him right after the fundraiser. Naruto had never been happier in his young life than when he left that Orphanage. Gleefully waving goodbye to the kids who waved back at him, the glaring caretakers and the gloomy Orphanage, Naruto had been very excited that day.

But today, his excitement knew no bounds. As he clutched Mr. Iruka's hand tightly and crossed the road to Konoha Academy, he couldn't help but stare in wonder at the homely looking wooden building, with a leaf mark on the main part of the building, a lush green lawn spanning the front and a playground from what he could see near the building's side. Naruto bounced along excitedly as Mr. Iruka laughed and opened the glass doors of the Academy.

"Are you excited about your first day at Kindergarten Naruto?" asked Mr. Iruka.

Naruto nodded animatedly, laughter bubbling in his throat. Mr. Iruka's eyes crinkled and he let Naruto through the main doors. As Naruto entered, he noted how huge the main office was and saw that the Academy had at most two classrooms.

"What class will I be in Mr. Iruka?" inquired Naruto.

"Well, you'll be with me. We only have one class here but we use both rooms in the Academy". Naruto nodded and bounded off to explore the rooms more.

As Naruto was busy examining the Academy, other families came in and left their children with Mr. Iruka. A lady at the reception, with dark hair and strange reddish eyes was talking with the parents and allowing them to sign forms, and then seeing them off. Naruto learned that this lady, the receptionist, was Miss Kurenai. As Naruto watched, more and more children started coming into the Academy. A boy with shaggy brown hair and triangle marks on his cheeks caught his eye and the two shared a wide mischievous grin. As Naruto was about to make his way to the boy, the door to the Academy flew open and in walked what Naruto thought was a princess.

Mr. Iruka would often read Naruto bed time stories, and in one story, there was a beautiful princess with flowing gold hair that lived in a tall tower. If she wanted to let anyone in, she'd have to throw down her hair and allow whoever wanted in to climb up the tower on her hair. To Naruto that was ridiculous and silly, and he had asked Iruka what made her so special other than her hair, to make her a princess. Iruka had answered that she had to be very beautiful and incredibly kind to others to make her so.

Going by what Iruka had said, Naruto was sure the girl who had walked into the Academy now was a real princess. She didn't have long golden hair and her clothes weren't as glittery as the princess' clothes in his storybook, but her short pink hair, frilly pink clothes and glittering green eyes were so dazzling that Naruto thought she was the prettiest girl he had ever seen.

Naruto walked straight up to her, being the forward, straight up, in your face boy he was and asked for her name. "Hi! I'm Naruto," he chirped and looked at her with round blue eyes. The girl put down her bag near the reception, where her mother was talking with Miss Kurenai and looked back at Naruto surprised. She never got to say what she wanted when she opened her mouth, because as soon as she did, the door flew open again, letting a strong gust of wind blow into the room.

Naruto and the girl looked towards the door to see who let the gust in. Naruto saw two people, a scary looking man and a kind looking woman enter the room with a sour faced boy who looked like he wanted to be anywhere else but here. He was wearing black baggy pants with pockets, neat black sneakers that looked to be very new and shiny, a navy blue hood and a bored expression on his small pale face. His most defining feature however, and what made Naruto giggle the most, was his funny hair, that looked like the back side of his rubber ducky that Iruka had gotten for him to make him take a bath. The boy looked up from the floor he was glaring holes at to see Naruto giggling at him, hands covering his mouth to stop the noise. The boy's scowling got even worse, but what ruined Naruto's mood was not the fact that the boy was now directing his Glare of Doom™ at him, not the fact that the boy's mother was looking at Naruto with a bemused smile on her face and not the fact that Iruka was glancing between the boy and Naruto with a worried look marring his features.

It was the gasp that Naruto heard from the girl beside him that made him stop giggling and turn to face her. The look on her face was one of pure adoration and the shiny glint of her pretty eyes made Naruto's stomach churn uncomfortably. Before he knew it, the girl had crossed the room to stand in front of the sour faced boy and was shyly trying to introduce herself.

"H-Hello Sasuke-kun. My name is Sakura."

The boy, who was still glaring at Naruto, turned in surprise to see the girl who was very bashfully looking down at her pink gumboots with a blush on her face.

"Hn." He said and turned away from her to follow his parents to the classroom where Miss Kurenai was giving them a tour.

As the boy walked away, with Sakura following him, he turned around to catch Naruto's crestfallen look and smirked. That's right. He smirked. Naruto felt his blood boil. The sour faced duck butt haired boy, who so casually walked into the Academy had not only stolen Naruto's first friend, first introduction and the first person that Naruto had shown unabashed feelings for, but he had the infuriating nerve to smirk so condescendingly as he did it.

It was Naruto Uzumaki's first day of Kindergarten and the once excited bubble he had when he entered the Academy was now gone to be replaced by the urge to strangle that smirk off the duck butt bastard's face.

. . .

Naruto had a problem. A big, big problem.

After all the children had been dropped off at the Academy by their parents and made their way into the classroom, Mr. Iruka said that seating arrangements had to be made and you had to stay with one other person at one desk for the rest of the year. Naruto, who had been fuming over the previous events of a certain duck butt haired weirdo stealing the princess known as Sakura from him and making him look stupid, just leaving him there, alone and dumbstruck in the corridor, perked up at the news that Mr. Iruka had given. He was going to be paired up with one person at one desk for the rest of the year? The anger clouding his mind lifted. This meant that he could sit by Sakura-chan and get to know her for a whole year. Naruto grinned widely and started bouncing on the balls of his feet. He tended to do that when he was excited.

Mr. Iruka started calling out names on his roll and randomly pairing up certain children with others. The boy Naruto saw earlier with triangle marks, who he learned was Kiba was paired up with a pale boy with round black glasses and a high collar hoody, named Shino. As Mr. Iruka got to the bottom of the list of children, he called out Sakura's name. Naruto perked up at that but became disappointed when Mr. Iruka made Sakura sit next to a blond haired girl with light blue eyes. Her name was Ino.

There were only a few people left to be paired. A dozy looking boy with a funny pineapple shaped head, who looked like he was going to fall asleep on his feet, and a chubby boy with weird spirals on his cheeks who was downing a bag of potato chips as if he had been starved for a week. Then Naruto turned to the final child and his eyes narrowed. It was him. The duck butt bastard. Naruto liked that name for him. It was like one of those names that the good Sheriff in the Looney Tunes Western cartoons on TV would give to a notorious criminal. And Naruto was sure that what the duck butt bastard did to him on the first day of school no less was a criminal offence.

Naruto narrowed his eyes at said bastard, who seemed to be staring out the window, unaware and unconcerned. He must've felt Naruto's eyes glaring holes into the side of his face because he turned, and his eyes widened when he saw Naruto. But that surprise was wiped off instantly and the two shared a glaring match as Mr. Iruka called out the last few names on his list.

"Shikamaru Nara and Chouji Akimichi".

Naruto stopped staring and looked at Mr. Iruka confused. The two boys who had their names called out went to their respective desk and took out some pen and paper for the drawing exercise they were to do for that morning. Naruto's eyes grew even wider when he looked at Mr. Iruka and heard the two names he didn't want to hear separated by an "and".

"Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha," Mr. Iruka said, while wearing a crinkly-eyed smile on his face.

Naruto at that moment, from the corner of his eye saw the smirk on the duck butt bastard's face. Naruto felt his world crumbling.

. . .

After drawing and painting session and class reading, the children were given time to go outside and play in the Academy playground. Naruto ran out of the room as if he were back in the Orphanage and had been released from the corner after his punishment time was over. Never had he been so glad to taste the fresh air and feel the rays of sunlight on his skin that streamed in dapples through the leaves of the trees in the playground. Naruto looked around him, to see if the object of his current depression had followed him outside and would be in his general vicinity when out of the classroom.

As soon as the children had been paired, Naruto had tried to protest and was about to say what was on his mind when Iruka looked at him concerned.

"Is everything alright Naruto?" Mr, Iruka has asked.

Seeing those worried crinkly eyes had stopped the words Naruto was going to say in his throat and he had silently shook his head no and walked sullenly to his desk, with a certain duck butt bastard, now known as Sasuke but Naruto liked his name for him better, in tow.

Throughout all the class time activities, as Naruto tried to distract himself by earnestly getting into the work, he couldn't help but notice Sasuke looking his way every now and then. Probably to pick a fight, Naruto thought sourly.

Naruto seemed to have good peripheral senses today because he also felt two pairs of eyes on him or his desk specifically. When he turned around to glare at whoever it was that was openly staring at them, he froze in shock. It was Sakura-chan and the girl Ino who were staring at not him, past him, but to Sasuke who was pointedly ignoring them and neatly writing out his work. Naruto had turned around angrily, to the point that Sasuke had stopped what he was doing momentarily to give Naruto an irritated yet puzzled glance. Naruto had pointedly ignored him and had gotten into stabbing his paintbrush at the paper on his desk.

Thus, when they were given playtime, Naruto wanted to be as far away from the duck butt bastard who seemed to not only steal his potential friends and crushes but also his desk and privacy now as well. Naruto saw the shaggy haired boy Kiba from earlier and his friend Shino near the garden looking at a ladybug on one of the plant leaves. He caught Kiba's eye and waved to him, who waved back, and was about to go over to them when he was shoved rather roughly from behind. The sandpit was in his way to the garden and so he fell face first into the sand.

Naruto spluttered and tried wiping the sand away from his eyes as he turned back around to look at who pushed him. Half expecting the duck butt bastard to be smirking at him from behind, he was surprised when another boy, with sharp white teeth and silvery hair was leering down at him, hands on his hips and chest puffed out as if he had done something extraordinarily valiant.

"What's the matter blondie? Didn't your mother pack you lunch? Is that why you're eating sand?" And with that, the boy laughs obnoxiously.

The other children are silent but a few laugh along, some of those being Sakura who looks at Naruto almost with sympathy as she covers her mouth with her hand to stifle the giggles. Naruto's heart clenches painfully as his wide eyes take in the scene of Sakura, the prettiest girl in the Academy laughing at him along with the bully who had pushed him into the sandpit. Just as Naruto was about to get up, sand is kicked in his face by the boy above him and more obnoxious laughter is heard. Naruto's eyes water and he's blinking back tears and rapidly rubbing his eyes to get rid of the grit, but to no avail as the sand digs deeper into his skin.

Suddenly the laughing stops and Naruto hears a dull thud and a body falling to the ground. Naruto's eyesight is still blurry with sand and tears but he can just make out a figure with a navy blue hood and spiky upturned dark hair standing with his back in front of him.

He distinctly hears the other boy whimpering and an ice cold voice saying "Don't touch him," before Mr. Iruka's voice is heard above the children's whispering, and Naruto is taken into warm arms and into the Academy.

. . .

Naruto was taken away from the class for the rest of the day and didn't come back until afternoon nap session was set to be over. Naruto walked into the class, hand in hand with Mr. Iruka, who rolled out a sleeping mat and gave him a blanket and pillow to sleep on. The children were placed together next to the person they shared desks with and so Naruto turned to see a tuft of duck butt hair peeking out from the blue blanket the figure next to him was wrapped in.

Naruto's eyes, still puffy and swollen from the rubbing he had done, were finally free of sand and he looked again at the sleeping figure next to him. He couldn't mistake that hair anywhere and he was sure that the same hair had been in front of him when that bully was on the ground. Naruto chewed on his lip as his eyes stared at his hands scrunching his blanket. It was now or never.

"Thanks," said Naruto in a meek voice, too meek to be his, he thought.

And with that, Naruto slid into his blanket and fell asleep quickly, with the hint of a smile on his face. The blanket covering the figure beside him also shifted and if Naruto had been facing the bastard, he would've seen that he was capable of more than just smirking.

. . .

Two days later found Naruto sitting with Kiba, Shino, the dozy boy Shikamaru and the pleasantly plump boy Chouji in the same sandpit that Naruto had been closely accustomed to, making a sandcastle with trenches, moat and tall towers and walls. Kiba had suggested that they make the sand nice and squishy so they could mold it better and said that they needed water to do that.

Shikamaru had muttered a sleepy "Troublesome" and had gone back to sleep on Chouji's shoulder, who was now downing his third bag of chips for the day. Kiba had said that he was going with Shino to get lady bugs to put in the castle to live, since the castle they were making was for them. So that left Naruto to get the water.

Naruto carried the red bucket to the tap on the side of the Academy and was about to turn the tap on when he heard Sakura-chan's voice. Only she was speaking to Sasuke. Now, don't get him wrong, Naruto thanked Sasuke for his help but that was all that he was willing to do. It certainly didn't mean that Naruto would go around being friends with the bastard just because he helped him once. The bastard still continued to be a bastard, not speaking unless he needed Naruto to do something for him, such as pass the PVA glue during art session or flip the page they were on during reading session, smirking and leering at him if Naruto ever looked in his direction and now, stealing Sakura-chan right in front of him.

As Naruto put down his bucket, he caught a bit of what Sakura was saying to Sasuke. Naruto watched as Sakura presented Sasuke with what looked like a chocolate box, neatly wrapped in blue wrapping paper with blue ribbon on the side. Naruto watched as Sasuke looked up from his book at Sakura with bored disinterest, eyed the chocolate box and then continued reading. Sakura was left holding out the chocolate box, her face turning red with embarrassment, as Sasuke neither took the box nor looked up at her from his book. Naruto decided that he should help her out because Sakura, being the angelic princess she was, couldn't possibly figure out that the duck butt bastard was just being his usual bastardly self.

"Hey Sakura-chan!" Naruto called out.

Sakura was cut out of her reverie and she turned to look at Naruto, hands still outstretched to Sasuke with the chocolate box. Naruto had to shout over the water that was filling his bucket.

"If that's chocolate, I don't think he'd eat it. Old duck butt didn't even touch the apple juice that we had with lunch today."

At that, even Sasuke turned with an incredulous look, probably from being called what he was to his face, thought Naruto. Sakura gawked at Naruto as if he had grown an extra head.

The bucket was almost full so Naruto looked away briefly to turn the tap off.

"Yeah, so I don't think he likes sweet stuff," chirped Naruto cheerfully as he walked away with his bucket of water.

As he turned, he missed Sakura's look of pure outrage and embarrassment and Sasuke's fleeting smile as he returned to his book.

. . .

"Well children," Mr. Iruka began, "As you probably know, this coming Friday will be Valentine's Day."

The class began buzzing with excited voices, amid a couple of groans from some of the boys.

"To celebrate, I was thinking that the Academy could have a picnic on Friday at the park where your parents will be invited."

The class began chattering excitedly again, only to have Mr. Iruka quiet them.

"In the days before Friday however, we'll be having cooking classes and Valentine card making sessions so each of you can give the people you love something special on Friday."

At this, some of the girls, notably Sakura and Ino, giggled and looked over at Naruto's table. Naruto placed his head on his desk irritably and faced the window. As he was busy wallowing in his gloomy thoughts, an idea struck him. Mr. Iruka had said that he could give the Valentines cards and chocolates he made to the person he liked. Maybe if he gave both those items to Sakura-chan and showed her how much more caring her was of her than Mr. I'm a duck butt-headed bastard, she'd finally stop oogling said bastard and focus her attentions on Naruto. It was a fool proof plan. What did he have to lose?

. . .

The following Monday at Konoha Academy saw the children of Mr. Iruka's class making chocolates for loved ones to take home. The batter was already made and mixed for the children so they wouldn't make such a mess of the Academy kitchen. All they had to do was pour the batter into circular holes on the baking tray to put into the oven to cook.

As Naruto clumsily poured his batter into the baking tray holes with a spoon, he couldn't help but glance over at Sakura who was neatly pouring her batter into the tray, all the while staring at Naruto's general direction covertly. Naruto turned to where she was staring, to the side of his head, and saw Sasuke, with his nose scrunched up in pure distaste, pouring the batter neatly albeit half-heartedly into his baking tray. Sasuke must've have felt Naruto staring because he turned to face Naruto and an easy smirk slid onto his face.

"The holes on the tray not big enough for you, Dobe?"

At this, Naruto bristled, but looked down at his tray anyway, to see that he had in fact been pouring his batter on to the table. Sighing in frustration, Naruto dropped his spoon into the batter and went to Mr. Iruka to ask for a paper towel. He came back and started to wipe the small mess on the table. When he went to grab his spoon however, he noticed that the spoon had slid down the batter bowl and into the batter, effectively coating its handle in chocolate batter.

"Ohhhhh!" Naruto cried in frustration as he went to dig into the batter bowl with his small hands. Before he could latch onto the handle and get his hands even more into the batter, Sasuke sighed and put down his own spoon.

"You're such a klutz," muttered Sasuke as he took Naruto's wrist and pulled his hands from the batter.

"Just get a new spoon and start over."

"You don't have to tell me that you bastard and I'm not a klutz!" Naruto cried back.

He went over to the main table to get another spoon, before coming back and putting the spoon in his bowl. Before he could scoop out some batter however, Sasuke grabbed the handle and started scooping out the chocolate onto Naruto's tray.

"Hey! I can do it myself!" exclaimed Naruto, trying to reach for the spoon.

But Sasuke only held him back with one hand and replied "Just watch me do it and do it yourself next time. You got chocolate on the table, who knows where you'll drop it next."

Naruto huffed and puffed out his cheeks, but watched Sasuke neatly arrange the chocolate on the baking tray. Unbeknownst to both, a certain pinkette watched the exchange with a furious blush on her cheeks.

After each child had placed their batter on their trays, Mr. Iruka had taken the trays and put them into the oven in the Academy kitchen. Mr. Iruka said it would take some time to cook, so they would go away and start making cards as they waited. Thus, a bottle of glue, some coloured paper, an annoyed Sasuke and an indignant Naruto later, the children were back in the kitchen waiting for Mr. Iruka to take out their trays of chocolate.

Mr. Iruka gave out the respective trays to each child, and after allowing sufficient time to cool, Mr. Iruka showed the children how to upturn the trays so their chocolate would tumble out onto the baking paper laid out on the table. As Naruto was doing so, the side of his face prickled, as if someone was staring intently in his direction. As he turned, he noticed Sakura-chan looking at him, a furious blush marring her features. Naruto was so surprised that she was actually staring at him rather than duck butt that he grinned broadly, hardly hearing himself drop his tray with a clatter. Only when Mr. Iruka came to ask Naruto if everything was alright did Naruto snap out of his reverie.

When he looked down at his baking paper however, he noticed only two chocolates out of the eight he had made remaining. Wondering where the other six had got to, he looked around the table to see if he had dropped them on the floor by accident. But as he looked around him, he noticed that Sasuke's pile of chocolate had doubled in size and that there were certainly more than eight chocolates on Sasuke's baking tray.

"Hey!" Naruto exclaimed, pointing at Sasuke.

Sasuke looked up from what he was doing, unfazed and face blank.

Naruto glared hard at him. "You stole my chocolate!"

Sasuke raised an eyebrow at this and looked down at his own pile of chocolate. "What are you talking about Dobe?"

Naruto glared harder at that. "Stop calling me that you duck butt! You stole my chocolate when I wasn't looking!"

Sasuke now looked annoyed. "Unless you're forgetting, I poured six of the chocolates into the tray for you. Since I did it, these chocolates are mine" and with that, the infuriating bastard smirked.

"Those chocolates were on my tray, so that makes them mine. Plus you don't even like chocolate! I was making these for Sakura-chan!" Naruto growled.

Sasuke raised both eyebrows now and was about to retort, but was stopped by Mr. Iruka telling all the children to take their baking paper with chocolates and place them in little baskets on the table, to take home with them that day.

As Naruto was about to snatch back his chocolate, the bell rung, signaling the end of the day. Each child passed out of the kitchen with their basket of chocolate, chattering excitedly about who they'd give their basket too. But as Naruto was distracted by the bustle of children leaving the room, he failed to notice his other two chocolates disappearing from the baking paper in front of him as well.

When he turned away from the commotion, he saw a very satisfied looking Sasuke, eyes glinting merrily, chewing something, with chocolate coating the sides of his mouth. Naruto's eyes went wide and he gasped.

"You-you-you . . . You did it again!" Naruto gaped at where his remaining two chocolates had been.

"You stole my chocolate and you ate them!" Naruto yelled.

Mr. Iruka looked over at the boys worriedly and was making his way over to them through the crowd of children filing out of the kitchen.

Sasuke licked his lips and licked his fingers clean as he stared smugly at a fuming and red Naruto.

"I never said I didn't like chocolate, Dobe" he said with that smug smirk of his, as he hopped off the chair he was sitting on at the kitchen counter and walked away with his basket.

"Ahhhhh!" Naruto yelled, pulling at his hair frustrated, and made to hop off the chair too and run down the evil bastard who stole and had the nerve to eat his chocolate in front of him.

That was the plan, that is before Naruto ran into a pair of jean clad legs and looked up to see the face of a not very amused Mr. Iruka. So now the Duck Butt Bastard (yes his name was being capitalised now because a tragedy of this magnitude only required such a title to be placed upon such a bastardly duck butt such as Sasuke) had not only stolen his first day introductions and the affections of the girl he liked, but now, had stolen his Valentine's chocolate and made it seem like it was all Naruto's fault! The Duck Butt Bastard would pay.

. . .

After Naruto had explained to Mr. Iruka, or more like shouted his complaint, about a certain Duck Butt Bastard and his chocolate stealing ways, Mr. Iruka said that Naruto could make more chocolates with him back at home. And thus, this is what Naruto did.

The next morning, with a cheery smile, sparkling eyes and a persona to match the bright morning sun itself, Naruto came to the Academy with Mr. Iruka, clutching a small box of chocolates wrapped in pink glittery paper. Naruto was just about to put his coat and bag on the rack when a familiar figure sporting a blue sleeveless shirt with high collar came up beside him to place his sleek black duffel bag near his own.

Naruto, without so much as glancing at the villainous chocolate stealing person beside him, placed his bag on the rack, and quickly scuttled off into the classroom, holding the chocolate box to his chest to prevent any thieving hands from certain bastards getting to it. He entered the classroom and quickly sat down at his desk, clutching the box like a lifeline and desperately scanning the room for Sakura-chan.

He had made the plan in his head all last night and this morning. He was going to go straight to the Academy, hide the box from the Duck Butt Bastard, find Sakura-chan as quickly as he could and give her the chocolates even if she didn't like pink or didn't feel like chocolates that day.

Naruto heard giggling from the doorway and turned to see Sakura-chan and her friend Ino enter, following . . . oh my. Mr. Duck Butt Bastard himself. And today, he didn't look like he was in a good mood. Not that Naruto cared. Because of him, Naruto got into trouble yesterday and had to re-cook his chocolates. Chocolates he planned to give to the _right_ person now, mind you.

Naruto strained past Sasuke's infamous duck butt hair to see Sakura, eyeing Sasuke with glittery eyes and a blush on her face. Naruto puffed out his cheeks but he had promised himself that after today, Sakura-chan would see just what a bastard Duck Butt was and how much he, Naruto cared for her, by presenting her with his chocolates.

Naruto missed Sasuke's intense stare and missed when he took a seat next to Naruto at their desk; Naruto being too preoccupied with Sakura.

"Hello Naruto"

Naruto turned around towards Sasuke, clearly shocked and startled that he had appeared near him out of the blue and without his notice. Naruto gave him one last wary look and turned to get up, but Sasuke caught his elbow.

"Where are you off to in such a hurry?"

"Since when did you use so many words when you talked to me?" retorted Naruto hotly.

Ignoring his question, Sasuke's eyes rested on the pink box clutched tightly to Naruto's chest.

"What's that?" asked Sasuke, pointing to the box.

Naruto looked down at the box, panic-stricken, and looked up to face Sasuke with wide eyes.

"Nothing."

"You sure?"

"Yup."

"Let me see it then." Sasuke made to reach for the box.

"No it's really nothing," said Naruto. And since when did his voice get all squeaky? Sasuke seemed to notice because he chose that moment to smirk his infuriating smirk.

"If it's really nothing, then you wouldn't have a problem with me seeing it, right?" said Sasuke, his face very close to Naruto's now.

Naruto gulped as he saw the intense look Sasuke was giving him with those dark piercing eyes of his.

"I told you it's nothing so let go of me!" Naruto squirmed under Sasuke's grip on his elbow.

"I'll let you go if you tell me what that is," Sasuke countered back smoothly.

Naruto was just about to retort, when he heard a throat clearing near their desk. He looked up to see none other than Sakura-chan, at their table, looking at him, and blushing that adorable blush she always had.

Naruto's face brightened but when he tried to move across the table to her, he noticed that Sasuke still had a tight grip on his elbow.

"G-Good morning Sasuke-kun," said Sakura, blushing even more scarlet under Sasuke's glare.

Sasuke, not relinquishing his hold on Naruto's elbow, glared harder at her if possible and gave his famous "Hn", before turning his attention back to Naruto who was currently squirming in his grasp.

Sakura opened her mouth to say what she wanted to say next, but never got around to it because at that moment, Naruto blurted out: "Sakura-chan, these are for you!"

Naruto held up the glittery pink box to her with his good hand that was Duck Butt Bastard free. Sasuke scowled at the pink box and then at Naruto, tightening his grip on Naruto's poor elbow. Naruto winced but continued anyway.

"I made these for you, so please take them!" Naruto looked at her imploringly and Sakura was dumbstruck as she looked at both boys, one pleading at her to take the chocolates and the other sending a murderous look to the other, all the while tightening his arm on the other's elbow.

Sakura, confused as she was, mutely reached out for the box and took it from Naruto, seeing relief flood his eyes and feeling more than seeing the dark aura radiating out of the other boy at Naruto's side.

"Thank you, Naruto" she said softly, as she returned to her desk and her friend Ino, who looked impatient to ask her how her talk with Sasuke went.

Naruto watched with relief and glee as Sakura went to her table with the box he gave to her. He then noticed that the arm on his elbow had not loosened its hold and turned around to face, a quiet Sasuke, his face hidden underneath his bangs. Naruto looked on, trembling a bit now, and he didn't know why, as Sasuke finally let go of his elbow, turned around and faced the front of the classroom. Mr. Iruka had started to make roll call.

. . .

After a session of making cards, where Naruto nonchalantly asked Sasuke for the PVA glue, only to have said bastard slam the bottle near Naruto so hard that Mr. Iruka had to come by and ask if everything was alright, the morning saw Naruto and the children go out to the playground to play.

Naruto was playing tag with Kiba, as Shikamaru dozed and Chouji watched. Then, Naruto saw a flash of pink from the corner of his eye. He stopped running, allowing Kiba to tag him and scamper off yelling that he was It, however Naruto barely heard Kiba. What he saw made his very breathing stop.

There Sakura-chan was, pretty as ever in pink, walking towards . . . oh hell no . . . Sasuke Duck Butt Bastard. She was holding something in her hands and walked up to Sasuke, who was scanning his book, or glaring holes into it, whichever you prefer and Naruto heard her meekly clearing her throat.

Sasuke didn't seem to hear so Sakura very meekly spoke up.

"Um Sasuke-kun?"

Sasuke tsked in annoyance and looked up to glare at whoever it was who was disturbing his peace and quiet.

Undeterred by the glare, Sakura continued on.

"Um I-uh, wanted to give you this," Sakura stuttered, holding out the box, a pink glittery box, to Naruto's horror, at Sasuke.

Sasuke looked at her in annoyance and then saw the box she was holding out to him. Naruto knew rather than saw the smirk that was going to appear on his bastardly face. Sasuke looked at Sakura and then peered past her, straight at Naruto's gobsmacked face and took the box, all the while holding Naruto's distressed stare with his own smug one.

"Thank you," he said and both Naruto and Sakura sighed, one in happiness, the other in defeat.

. . .

Why? Thought Naruto, as he stuffed his jumper and pencil case into his orange froggy bag. Why did that no good, chocolate stealing Duck Butt Bastard have to steal his chocolate? Chocolate that was meant for a _different person_ mind you. He never saw him eating other sweet stuff, heck he avoided sweetened drinks they got for a lunchtime treat like the plague. He wouldn't take any sweet things from other people, even Sakura-chan, and yet he would take all of Naruto's things, his girl, his sweets, all with that infuriating smirk and teasing eyes.

Only a cracked crazy person would do what the bastard is doing now thought Naruto miserably. However, Naruto, the number one prankster in Konoha, was not going to let this evil incarnate get away with everything.

Naruto had, after witnessing the exchange between Duck Butt and Sakura-chan at the playground, left the game of tag and Kiba to go inside into the kitchen, his mind working furiously. He hadn't gotten this gutsy and reckless since that great prank at the Orphanage where he had placed a cheesecake made specifically for a staff member's birthday, on the head caretaker's seat. The woman never looked where she sat anyway, and so if Naruto's clockwork froggy was of no concern to her, then Naruto doubted she'd mind sitting on something softer, like a cheesecake.

Naruto looked around the kitchen, searching for the weapon he had in mind. He spotted the left over batter that Mr. Iruka had bought into the Academy that day. It was the left over batter from the chocolates he and Naruto made last night. Naruto had no idea why Mr. Iruka had bought the batter to the Academy and when he asked, the older man had blushed and sputtered that it was for a friend.

Naruto was glad that Mr. Iruka had been so thoughtful towards his friend. Now Naruto would be thoughtful of that bastardly Duck Butt. If that bastard wanted chocolate, then by the Great Ramen God, he'd get it.

Naruto carefully got on the stool facing the kitchen counter and swiveled in the chair to face the batter bowl. He took the bowl soundlessly, a mischievous grin painting his features, and headed out of the kitchen.

. . .

Come home time, Naruto would always help Iruka pack up his things and then they'd both leave the Academy, so Naruto was used to leaving after everyone else. This also gave him the perfect chance to see if his brilliant plan worked.

Naruto peered around the classroom door to see the rest of the children start packing away their things into their bags to go home. Naruto watched with glee as Mr. Duck Butt walked calmly to his bag. Wait a second, wasn't his bag the black duffel bag? But then, why were Sakura and Ino picking it up, giggling profusely?

As Sasuke got closer, the two girls quickly looked around, noticed his approach and reached into his bag to place a pink heart shaped card into the duffel bag. Naruto's eyes widened and he quickly ducked his head from the corridor and ran to the store closet, hoping to hide there from the coming disaster.

Two twin screams filled the Academy, and a profusely apologizing Iruka, three sets of irate parents and a sheepish Naruto later, Naruto was leaving the academy for the day with Mr. Iruka, who had berated him for his prank and had told him that they wouldn't be making anymore chocolate that week.

What made Naruto upset was not Mr. Iruka scolding him, not Sakura-chan's, Ino's and Duck Butt's mothers smiling down at him kindly and even pinching his cheeks and not even when he had to help Mr. Iruka clean up the mess. It was Mr. Duck Butt Bastard himself, who had the gall to look at him as he wiped at a spot on the Academy corridor floor with a paper towel, place a chocolate from the pink box into his mouth, which he now clutched to him as tightly as Naruto had when he came in that morning, and smirk down at him with teasing black eyes, eyes crinkling in mirth.

Naruto didn't even look back at him then. He got up and left the bastard staring at his back and probably laughing at his expense as he chowed down on Naruto's chocolates.

. . .

The end of the week saw the Valentines picnic Mr. Iruka had promised to the Academy children and their parents at Konoha Park. It was a sunny day, the sky clear and blue with puffy clouds that looked like marshmallows hovering overhead, as children and parents enjoyed their picnic upon a big grassy knoll in the park.

Contrary to what others thought, Naruto was actually lying beside his friend Shikamaru today, gazing at the puffy clouds that went by in the sky, imagining all sorts of shapes and images. But then, Naruto started seeing chocolate clouds in the sky, which then miraculously turned into ducks before his very eyes. Naruto eyed his sleeping friend and thought to himself that cloud watching wasn't all it was cracked up to be.

Just as he was about to go find Kiba to resume their tag game from the other day, Naruto spotted a flash of blue and black spiky hair making its way to the hilly top that he and Shikamaru were resting on. Naruto didn't want to deal with whatever was to come right now, so he made to leave.

"Naruto."

Naruto froze. Shocked. It was the first time that he had called out his name before.

He turned around to face a familiar dark gaze and pale face, but without the usual smug smirk. Naruto looked up warily at the boy, who sat down next to Naruto and pulled out something from behind his back.

Naruto half expected it to be something that he would use to hit Naruto with and then run away, smirking that infuriating smirk. But no. It was a large box, wrapped in orange spiral paper.

"What's this?" asked Naruto, thoroughly confused now.

"It's a box" said Sasuke, looking to the side now.

Naruto stared at the box, not before Sasuke impatiently shoved the box into Naruto's hands, his cheeks painted slightly pink from the afternoon sun.

Naruto looked at Sasuke wide eyed and stared at the box again.

"Well open it Dobe!" snapped Sasuke impatiently, frown marring his features.

At that Naruto bristled but complied anyway and opened the box and wrapping. Inside was a large amount of chocolate. Of all shapes and sizes, cream filling, solid filling, fruit filling, jelly filling, milk, white and dark. Naruto stared down at the bundle and then looked up, surprise very clear on his face, at Sasuke, who was once again looking everywhere but at him.

Then Naruto smiled, eyes wide and said, "So you're returning the favour of taking all my chocolate?"

Sasuke looked at him incredulously, then sighed and answered "Think what you want Dobe. But I have one condition for my present."

Naruto looked up from examining the box and blinked owlishing at Sasuke.

"What's that?"

"You never give this to anyone else".

Naruto blinked and looked past Sasuke to a pink haired girl who was currently looking over at them forlornly.

"Does that include—"

"Yes." Sasuke deadpanned, eyes boring into Naruto's as Naruto quickly looked down to the box, a slight tinge on his cheeks.

"There's too many in here for me to eat though," Naruto said quietly.

"Why don't you eat them with me?" Blue eyes stared up at surprised Dark ones.

"You know I hate sweet things."

"That didn't stop you before," Naruto retorted cheekily, grinning wide as Sasuke gave an exasperated sigh but reached his hand to take one chocolate.

Naruto smiled as he watched Sasuke take one dark chocolate piece.

"Hey Sasuke,"

Sasuke turned, chocolate in his mouth and chewing slowly.

"You're not such a Duck Butt Bastard after all."

Sasuke fought the urge to choke on his chocolate and instead snorted and took another piece from the box, a hint of a smile gracing his features.

. . .

* * *

**Author's End Note: **And there you have it. I only meant for this to be a oneshot but who knows? Maybe I'll make a series of oneshots of Naruto and his various adventures in kindergarten all the way up to University ~~

Until next time ~~

**EDIT:** Due to demand, I will continue this story and make it a chapter story. The chapters will be as long as they are now so hope you stay tuned!


	2. Special: The musings of a Scarecrow

**Full Summary: **Naruto never had any luck when it came to making friends, even less so with the prettiest girl with lovely pink hair in Mr. Iruka's class. But all that is about to take a turn for the worse when a new rich kid with duck butt hair starts attending Naruto's kindergarten, stealing his girl's affection, stealing his friends and worst of all, stealing his chocolate?

**Pairings:** SasuNaru

**Rating:** PG (K+)

**Warnings:** Pure, unadultered, sweet enough to give you toothache fluff, Sakura bashing if you squint.

**Author's Note:** This chapter is just a small side chapter before the next journey of Sasuke and Naruto's young lives begin. Enjoy!

**Ages in the current chapter: **

Naruto: 6

Sasuke: 7

Sakura: 7

Other children: 7

Iruka: 32

Kakashi: 32

* * *

**. . .**

**Naruto and the Chocolate Stealing Thief**

_Special: The musings of a Scarecrow_

**. . .**

A middle-aged man walked down the main street nearest to Konoha Academy. A green scarf covered the lower half of his face and his one visible eye moved across the page of an open book, with a suspicious orange cover. A mop of gray gravity-defying hair and one hand placed casually in his jacket pocket completed his casual yet mysterious look. The man seemed to be so engrossed in his reading that a passerby would have thought that he hadn't notice the small figure of a boy walking ahead of him, his black sleeveless hoodie clad shoulders squared, navy blue jean-clad legs working furiously on the footpath, as if the boy was trying to get as far away from the one-eyed man as he could.

The man continued his leisurely pace and unbeknownst to the boy walking quickly in front of him and any people that happened to witness the scene, said man was in fact keeping his one good eye trained on his young charge and his book.

. . .

Sasuke was trying to walk as fast as his short legs could carry him. His eyes were glued to the front, black orbs glaring vehemently, as if he were silently willing anything and everything in his line of vision to combust into flames. He tsked under his breath, huffing at the exercise this power walking was giving him. He was in no particular hurry to get to the Academy, however he wanted nothing more than to get away from the private tutor and guardian his father had hired for him over the summer to make him sharper in his school studies and generally keep him from wreaking havoc in the Academy.

If it hadn't been for _that_ particular incident, I wouldn't be stuck with this weird guy, thought Sasuke sullenly to himself, kicking a rock on the footpath. Regret weighed deeply in Sasuke's young mind, making his thin black eyebrows crinkle into a frown over his black eyes.

_If only on that fateful day, he hadn't been sitting in his usual spot underneath the shade of the Oak tree in Konoha Academy, leisurely reading his book._

_If only that pink haired girl, he forgot what her name was, hadn't come up to him with a bright blue box full of some odious trinket she wanted to give him, a brighter smile on her face._

_If only one certain blonde Dobe hadn't tried to tell the pink haired girl that Sasuke didn't like overly bright things, like the box she was holding, despite however much that statement had made his lips quirk at the corners. _

_If only said girl hadn't turned around, with a glint in her green eyes and a small yet strained smile on her face, to tell Naruto quite sternly to leave her alone and mind his own damn business, her hands tightening around the blue package._

_If only he hadn't seen Naruto's usually sunny expression on his small face lose its usual brightness, his wide grin falter just a bit, his sky blue eyes become a tad duller as he turned his attention to the floor, as if it held the most interesting thing imaginable in its earthy depths._

_If only he, Sasuke, annoyed as he was by the disturbance to his reading, hadn't felt that Naruto should be the kind of person who always smiled in any situation and had particularly wanted that contagious grin that made him smirk against his own volition to appear again at that moment._

_If only he hadn't turned to the girl before him then, his stare impassive yet cold, and told her to take a hike, as politely as he could, which wasn't very politely at all. _

_If only he hadn't tugged Naruto with him, despite the blond Dobe's protests, away from the area, ignoring and not really caring what else the girl behind him would do._

_If only Sasuke, as intelligent and ingenious as he was, could have predicted said girl would start bawling her eyes out loud enough for Mr. Iruka to come rushing outside, asking her what was the matter._

_If only he had spoken out then to Mr. Iruka, instead of grunting as he normally did and walking away with a quiet Naruto in tow._

_And if only his father was away on a business trip as usual, and not able to attend his Academy parent teacher conference, to face a worried Iruka. It would have saved Sasuke the ordeal of staring up into deep black eyes that were frowning down at him, its black depths calculating._

_If only._

Sasuke sighed to himself as he continued his trek to the Academy grounds, keen for this day to be over even though it was the very first day of Grade 2. He abruptly stopped near the Academy crossing and turned his head to the man behind him, directing an annoyed glare his way. Despite his desire to get away from his guardian, he couldn't really cross the street without said adult. Afterall, his father might hire two guardians to keep him in check, he thought miserably to himself. One was more than enough, thank you.

As the gray haired man came to stop by Sasuke's side, his nose still buried in his orange book, he held out one hand to Sasuke, who rolled his eyes and wordlessly took it. They both crossed the road quickly, and Sasuke snatched back his hand just as quick, walking ahead of his guardian with determined steps towards the Academy gate.

As the older man walked slowly and hung back to watch his young charge's small frame run up to the building gates, his one good eye, which was simultaneously taking in the innocent scene before him and the, ahem, not so innocent words in his novel, happened upon a young blond who had all but bounced up to the gates, his head turning to look excitedly at a brown-haired man with crinkly black eyes and a scar over his nose.

As he watched, Sasuke stopped walking, slowing down to a halt as he also observed the scene before him, head titled in a way that looked to be gazing in the direction of the shorter blond.

Kakashi's one good eye stopped skimming the pages of his novel and the hand holding said book snapped the covers shut. He placed the book in his jacket pocket and walked up behind Sasuke to the two people who had just come into his line of vision, both hands now casually placed in his pockets.

. . .

Naruto skipped across the footpath, humming a happy tune. It was his very first day of Grade 2 and as usual when he started something new, he was a bouncing ball of excitement. With sunny hair that glinted like gold in the morning sun, blue eyes that rivaled the sky, which were now curved upward into blue slits, and a wide grin on his whisker-marked face, Naruto ran as fast as his short, stubby legs could carry him towards the gate of Konoha Academy.

"Naruto! Be careful! Don't run so fast!" huffed Iruka, as he hurriedly walked up behind Naruto, papers and folders in his arms.

"Hurry hurry Iruka! We're going to be late!" chirped Naruto, grin plastered wide on his face.

"Naruto, it's eight o'clock in the morning, I doubt we'll be late!" chuckled Iruka, black eyes crinkling at the corners as he watched the young blond's antics.

Naruto bounced on the balls of his feet as Iruka endeavoured to open the Academy gate with one hand. As he was doing so, he failed to notice the papers in his hands slipping from his grasp ever so slightly. Just before he dropped the papers, he felt a firm hand holding the gate open, another hand on the papers that had almost slipped to the floor.

Iruka looked up, wide eyed, and traced his gaze over the pale arm on the papers in his hands to a black jacket, a green scarf and a mop of gray gravity-defying hair. The curve of the man's one good eye that peeped through his fringe of hair and scarf was the only thing that gave away any expression on him. Iruka flushed, gazing wide-eyed at the smiling face.

"K-Kakashi!" Iruka stuttered, face turning even redder as he hurriedly gathered up the papers that were about to fall to the floor.

"Hello, Iruka. Long time no see," said Kakashi good naturedly, as he regarded Iruka with his one good eye.

Naruto, who had been waiting rather impatiently for Iruka to open the gate, looked up as far as his short neck would allow him at Kakashi. Naruto giggled behind his hands, earning the attention of both men who now looked down inquisitively at the blond.

"Hey! Hey mister! You look like a scarecrow!" Naruto exclaimed, bursting into peals of laughter as he pointed at said Scarecrow resembling man, one hand on his knee to keep his balance.

"Hey! Naruto! Where are your manners?" chided Iruka as he stared aghast at the young blond, who was still doubled over in laughter.

"His name is Mr. Kakashi, Naruto. Not Scarecrow!"

At this, Naruto stopped laughing abruptly, gazing at Iruka and then Mr. Kakashi with wide impossibly blue eyes.

"He's Kakashi?" asked the blond, staring between both adults' faces.

"So he's the friend you keep sending presents to during Valentines day?" asked Naruto, staring curiously at a now red faced Iruka who mumbled something unintelligible and proceeded to hastily push open the Academy gate, as Kakashi inwardly laughed, his one good eye staring at Iruka's back with mirth.

Something moved towards Naruto's right hand side and he turned his head towards the disturbance, embarrassing questions towards his foster father forgotten.

"Sasuke!" cried Naruto, his face alighting with joy as he eyed said boy, who had up till now been staring impassively at him. Sasuke's lips twitched at the corners, signifying a smirk forming on his porcelain face.

"Hn, Dobe" he smirked, watching Naruto's face intently as said boy's expression turned into a pout, blue eyes staring angrily at him.

"Don't call me that you bastard!" the short blond cried, balling his hands into fists as he tried to stare down the taller boy, who was at least a good five centimetres taller than himself. Sasuke obviously noticed this, as he smirked infuriatingly down at Naruto, his dark eyes sparkling with mirth.

At the exchange between the two boys, both older men looked down at them, one chiding the blond boy for his language, the other with surprise in his one good eye as he observed his moody charge. Kakashi looked between both Sasuke and Naruto, observing their exchange with mild interest, before his eye turned into its characteristic upside-down "U".

"Well you two seem to know each other very well," commented Kakashi as if he were commenting mildly on the weather.

At this, Sasuke's smirk turned into a frown and he glared up at Kakashi, who eyed him with amusement.

"Hn," said Sasuke, giving his trademark "I don't give a damn what you think" grunt, as he brushed past Naruto roughly, butting shoulders with him.

"Hey! Watch where you're going bastard!" cried Naruto, gazing after Sasuke with a pout on his face. But Sasuke just kept walking, not even waving a hand to acknowledge the people behind him.

"Naruto! Watch your language, young man!" Iruka said, frowning at the small boy beside him. Naruto looked up at Iruka, the pout still on his face.

"He started it," Naruto began, staring up at Iruka with wide blue eyes.

"It doesn't matter! You know Sasuke-kun is very shy. He doesn't talk very much with anybody so the least you could do is be nice to him when he does," reasoned Iruka, gazing into confused blue eyes with kind black ones.

Kakashi watched all these proceedings with great interest. He eyed Sasuke's retreating back with his one good eye, his green scarf moving as a hint of a smile or what looked to be one, appeared on his covered face.

. . .

"Naruto-kun seems to adore you very much," Kakashi said, as he watched Naruto settle his froggy bag down exuberantly on the bag-racks, near a calm Sasuke who was taking out his books and pencil case.

"Hmm? Oh, I guess so!" said Iruka, recovered from his previous embarrassment. A slight flush still dusted his cheeks and he raised his hand up to his hair to scratch it.

"I've known him since he was four. He's my foster son, but I consider him to be a little brother to me. A boisterous, sometimes annoying yet lovable little brother." Iruka smiled.

Kakashi watched Iruka from the corner of his eye, and then regarded Naruto and Sasuke, who were now heading into the classroom, one chatting animatedly with the other who was walking in step with the blond, his long legs taking a stride for each two Naruto took.

"How long has Naruto known Sasuke?" asked Kakashi as he observed the pair disappear around the door to the classroom.

"Oh well, since I took Naruto to the Academy when he was four I guess. Sasuke was five at the time and they butted heads a lot at first."

"Oh?" asked Kakashi, interest showing in his one good eye as he regarded Iruka.

Iruka nodded his head, setting down his papers near the front reception. Kurenai was behind said desk, typing on the computer. She looked up from her work and acknowledged both men, taking the papers from Iruka and setting them down on her desk. Iruka turned and continued walking in the direction of the classroom, a single folder in his hands.

"Well, I had placed them at the same desk together then," started Iruka as he walked with Kakashi, "However for some reason that I cannot fathom, Naruto took a great dislike to him."

Kakashi raised his only visible eyebrow. He turned the corner into the classroom and saw that Naruto and Sasuke were both at one desk, one quietly setting and rearranging his utensils, the other still chattering excitedly.

"Well, I don't find that to be much of a surprise really. Just look at them. They're polar opposites," gestured Kakashi, and both men turned to regard the two children sitting at the table.

"I know, but it's what happened after that really puzzled me and annoyed Naruto to no end."

"And what was that, if I may ask?"

"Well, it was the week where Valentines Day fell, and I had the children cook chocolates in little baskets to commemorate the day. Naruto got into a huge fight with Sasuke-kun during our first cooking lesson and when I went over to investigate, Naruto told me that Sasuke-kun had stolen his Valentines chocolates."

Kakashi now looked at Iruka, surprise clear on his face. Iruka nodded, glancing at Kakashi as he walked to his desk.

"That's right. Sasuke-kun doesn't really like sweet things. He refuses to eat any of the sweet treats we occasionally give the children during lunch. So I found it absurd that Sasuke-kun would take Naruto's _chocolate_." Iruka sighed, starting to arrange items on his desk.

"Naruto is known to be a troublemaker and a prankster by some, but even if Naruto is like that, he certainly wouldn't lie. If he did, he probably wouldn't be so good at it," finished Iruka, staring at the two boys at the far table with crinkled black eyes.

"He's very easy to read, Naruto. He's like an open book."

"Hmm," regarded Kakashi, one hand on his chin.

"But do you know? After the Valentines week ended, Sasuke and Naruto became very good friends." Iruka said as he cleared the few items on his desk and put them in his drawer.

"I also noticed that Sasuke only seems to be sociable with Naruto. He doesn't talk or interact much with the other children. I think it's because Sasuke is very shy, so I tend to pair him up with Naruto, just to help his social skills a bit."

Kakashi nodded absentmindedly, gazing over at the two children. Naruto was sitting very close to Sasuke now, pointing at something in Sasuke's book excitedly and chattering away. Kakashi observed as Sasuke looked over towards Naruto, black eyes raking over Naruto's face, a slight pinkish tinge on his pale cheeks.

"You know, I've been Sasuke's tutor over the entire summer break and as short as that time period is compared to how long you've known him, I can agree that he hardly interacts with anyone."

Iruka nodded with a smile, as he gazed in the same direction as Kakashi.

"He is a bit different but then again both of them are. They make such a strange yet endearing duo, don't you think?" asked Iruka, smiling at Kakashi.

Kakashi chuckled at this, one good eye gazing knowingly at Sasuke, who caught his gaze and glared at him. "Indeed they do."

. . .

After all the children had arrived and were seated cross legged on the carpet, Kakashi watched as Iruka made roll call and looked around his class with crinkled black eyes, holding a glittery hat with bits of paper in it

"Settle down children! This year, I've decided to mix up the seating arrangements just a bit. You all know that whoever I choose for you to sit with will be your desk buddy for the whole year. This year however, I've decided to put names in a hat and have half the class pick out one name. Whoever's name is on that piece of paper will be the person you sit with for the rest of the year."

At this, the children chattered excitedly, wondering who it would be that they'd pick out of the hat. A notable pinkette and her blond haired friend looked over at a pale boy sitting next to a sunny blond who chattered to him, the other inclining his head towards said blond, a small smile on his pale face.

The blond boy seemed to notice two pairs of eyes on him and Sasuke, and turned to see Sakura-chan and Ino staring at him intently. He smiled widely and waved back at them. He didn't notice Sakura turn her head at the movement of Naruto's waving arm, only noticing his presence now. With her eyes downcast, she turned back around to face the front, her friend Ino turning her nose at Naruto and joining suit. Naruto stopped waving and looked at them confused.

"Hey Sasuke, what's up with them?" asked Naruto, pouting slightly as he continued to stare at Sakura-chan's pretty pink head.

Sasuke followed Naruto's gaze to Sakura, and then looked back at Naruto impassively.

"Hn," he said, turning his face to the front, a slight smirk on his face. "You're such a Dobe."

At this Naruto turned to face Sasuke, a furious look in his eyes.

"Well at least I'm not a rude bastard like you!"

Sasuke's shaking shoulders and bemused smile were the only giveaways of his mirth.

"Hey bastard! I'm talking to you-"

"Settle down everyone!" said Iruka, as he brought out the hat with paper bits sticking out of the top corners.

"I have the hat here so when I call out half of the roll, the people whose names I call out have to come to the front and pick a name from the hat."

He looked around at the small faces who were staring at him quietly yet curiously. Iruka's black eyes crinkled at the corners.

"Alright, let's start!"

Iruka looked to his roll.

"Akimichi, Chouji"

Chouji stuffed away his chip packet that was now almost empty, and waddled to the front of the class. He put one pudgy hand into the hat and picked out a piece of paper.

"Let's see who you picked. Oh! It's Kiba," Iruka said with a smile, as Chouji walked over to Kiba and both sat down behind one desk, grinning to each other.

Iruka proceeded to call out more names. It seemed he was going by every second child on the list. Shikamaru was paired with Ino, much to her chagrin, and walked with him to the table they'd be sharing, a giggling Sakura looking on.

"Haruno, Sakura"

As soon as she heard her name being called, she jumped up and almost ran to the front of the class. She excitedly put her hand into the hat and tried sorting through the papers, looking over the rim of the hat with one eye to see if she'd picked the_ right _person.

"Sakura-chan, you're not supposed to look when you're picking out your desk buddy," said Iruka chuckling.

At this Sakura pouted a bit but felt her hands closing over one piece of paper. Excitedly, she pulled it up out of the hat and gave it to Iruka to read out. She was sure of it. Absolutely sure it would be _him_.

"Ah, what do you know," said Iruka, as he went to mark down the pairings on his roll list. "You'll be sitting with Naruto."

As Iruka wrote down the respective names on the roll, he missed Sakura's look of shock, Naruto's exuberant "Yosh!" and one sullen, quiet boy staring at the ground, his eyes covered by his spiky bangs, a hand balled into a fist at his side, shaking slightly.

Kakashi, who had been observing the class proceedings from the back of the room, looked on with an upside "U" in place of his one good eye.

. . .

It was writing time in Konoha Academy and the children had taken out their pencils and books to practice writing their Hiragana in large letters on lined paper. Naruto was busy scrawling out his letters, tongue sticking out of the corner of his mouth and blue eyes scrunched in concentration. He chanced a glance at Sakura, eyes twinkling with happiness as he stared unabashedly at said pinkette, who was neatly writing out her work in her book.

He saw her turn her head, looking to the back of the classroom, a forlorn and miserable expression on her face. Naruto's own eyes widened in surprise and he looked to where her gaze was directed, only to see a thoroughly annoyed Sasuke, head in the palm of his right hand, eyes scrunched up into black slits and scowl deeply etched on his face, writing in his book furiously. Naruto could've sworn that he could see smoke wafting up from the papery surface his lead pencil was running across.

Naruto blinked, surprised but not really surprised by his friend's behaviour. Sure he knew Sasuke was an uptight bastard who was as moody as all heck and would turn from a quiet yet impassive person to a boiling volcano at the drop of a hat, but what Naruto himself hadn't really understood, from all the time he had spent with Sasuke since the start of their Academy days, was why Sasuke's mood would change.

At first he thought it was because the bastard couldn't stand a speck of happiness lighting up his life even once and saw fit to make Naruto as miserable as possible to squash that happiness out of him and make him as miserable as the bastard was, but Naruto quickly ruled that out, thinking that even the bastard, King of all things Miserable and Gloomy, wouldn't be that horrible.

Naruto gazed back at Sakura and then again to Sasuke's table, where said King of Gloominess was proceeding to stab his lead pencil into his book. Sasuke's partner, a tall-ish boy with spiky red hair and wide eyes was staring at Sasuke, and looking back to his work, his expression clearly saying that he didn't want to interrupt whatever Sasuke was doing. At that moment, Sasuke seemed to notice eyes on him, and looked up from his work, his face irritable and scowl still fixed firmly on his face. He caught Naruto's gaze and his eyes widened marginally, before they settled back to glaring at Naruto, who returned said glare with equal ferocity.

Naruto turned back to his work, forgetting what it was he was writing. He didn't seem to notice a certain pinkette beside him, looking at his profile, her face contorted as if she was about to cry, green eyes glistening with unshed tears.

All this activity was being watched by one black eye, gazing lazily over the words in his little orange book, with what appeared to be a smirk on his cloth covered face.

. . .

It was a cheerful day outside. The sun was shining brightly through the leafy canopy of Konoha Academy's playground. A light breeze flowed gently in the courtyard full of laughing children playing with their respective friends and play equipment and a certain tanned teacher looking out at the scene with crinkly black eyes and a kind smile on his face.

A certain gray haired man was sitting in a chair, reclining lazily as his eye moved across the page of his book. Out of that one eye, he saw a gloomy contrast to the sunny atmosphere in the playground.

His young charge was glaring holes at his book, as if he thought that if he concentrated hard enough, it would burst into flames. A small smile appeared on Kakashi's face as he took in Sasuke's scowl and constant glances at a certain blond haired boy who was laughing happily and chasing another boy with triangle marks on his cheeks.

. . .

Sasuke tried to concentrate on the words in his novel, gripping the covers tightly in his small hands and making the pages crinkle at the corners. He sighed as his concentration was broken yet again by boisterous laughter. He glanced up annoyed at Naruto, who was playing a game of tag with Kiba. Scowl firmly in place, he shut his book with a loud snap and stuffed it into his jean pocket as he stood up, brushing away any dirt on his pants. Glossy black sneakers scrunched the leaf litter of the yard as he made his way over to Naruto, hands in his pockets, face impassive and black eyes watching said blond boy keenly.

He stopped when he was near enough to Naruto that said boy ceased his running and looked up at Sasuke, eyes wide in surprise. Naruto's lips quickly turned into a pout and he turned around, head tilted high and arms crossed firmly around his chest.

"What do you want, you bastard?" asked Naruto, with his back still turned.

"Hn, Dobe," Sasuke started, the nickname easily slipping out of his mouth and having the desired effect of turning Naruto around, eyes blazing blue.

"Don't call me that! If you're here to insult me 'cos you're bored then I'm leaving!"

And with that, Naruto turned to leave, heading towards Kiba who had stopped running to look at some bugs in a jar that Shino was holding.

Sasuke sighed, before saying "I think I know why that girl you're always looking at looks at us."

At this statement, Naruto whirled around, almost tripping over his own feet.

"Y-you do?"

"Yeah."

"Then what are you waiting for?! Tell me!" the impatient blond cried out, grin wide and blue eyes sparkling.

Sighing again, Sasuke made his face as calm and impassive as possible before he uttered his next few words.

"That boy who sits next to me, Juugo I think, sits behind us usually. I think she was staring at him."

Naruto's blond eyebrows furrowed as he looked at Sasuke confusedly.

"What do you mean?"

At this Sasuke sighed impatiently, hand raking his sleek black hair.

"It means exactly what it means, Dobe. Figure it out."

Naruto huffed and puffed out his cheeks, scowling at Sasuke. But then as he thought for a moment, realization dawned in his eyes.

"Y-you mean, Sakura-chan looked back at your table just before because of Juugo?"

Sasuke lifted his right shoulder, shrugging as he turned his face away from Naruto, looking anywhere else but at him. However, Naruto was putting two and two together as he placed a finger on his chin, staring at the ground with scrunched blue eyes.

"So do you think Sakura-chan might, you know, have been sad that she didn't get to sit with Juugo?" asked Naruto, looking up at Sasuke with big blue eyes and a sad pout on his face. Sasuke chanced a glance at Naruto and looked away just as quickly, a pink flush appearing across his pale cheeks.

Naruto didn't seem to notice as he looked towards Sakura, who was now talking quietly with Ino on the swings. She was looking over at Naruto and Sasuke now and then, and as Naruto followed her gaze further, he did in fact see Juugo playing in the sandpit behind him and Sasuke, looking engrossed in his current work.

Naruto's eyes scrunched in confusion as he turned to look at Sasuke.

"B-but I thought she was looking at you, bastard!" Naruto cried, pointing his finger at Sasuke who had turned around to go sit back down in his usual spot underneath the Oak tree.

"Hn."

And with that Naruto was left to his own thinking, watching as Sasuke seated himself back down on his perch and opened his book, his devious smile hidden behind the covers.

From the other end of the playground, Kakashi flipped a page in his own book, one black eye twinkling with mirth.

. . .

That afternoon, Iruka, to the begging of Naruto, and with a smiling Kakashi watching, changed the table arrangements as Naruto wanted.

Naruto sat down in his new chair and looked out the window, sighing a bit but ultimately happy with himself. He turned his head as the scraping of a plastic chair against carpet alerted him to a newcomer to his desk. Naruto turned around and brightly acknowledged Sasuke. The bastard's mood had seemed to have gotten better, but his face was still as impassive as ever.

"Thanks for telling me what you did before, bastard! Now Sakura-chan may like me more!"

And with that, he turned in his chair to see said pinkette behind him, gazing at their table with wide green eyes and a contorted face, as if she were about to cry. Naruto waved over at her and smiled cheerfully before he turned around, missing said pinkette's trembling bottom lip and deepening frown.

"She's so happy with me, she looks like she'd cry. But I hope not. Sakura-chan's prettier when she's smiling," said Naruto, more to himself.

Sasuke looked towards Naruto, a softness appearing in his eyes before his face quickly morphed into a scowl.

"You're such a Dobe."

"Stop calling me that, bastard! At least now I don't have you to compete with! She never liked you in the first place!" finished Naruto, grinning triumphantly.

Sasuke turned to face the front of the room, a smile playing on his lips and a slight pink tinge on his cheeks. He caught the eye of one gray-haired man who was sitting at the front of the classroom now, waiting for Iruka to start the next session.

Kakashi's one visible eye turned into an upside-down "U" shape as he gazed at his pupil, while Sasuke's face lost all traces of his previous happy mood, and he proceeded to flip through his workbook rapidly, lifting up said book to hide the heat that seemed to be radiating from his face.

"Hey, bastard, why are you hiding your face?" asked an inquisitive Naruto.

"Shut up, Dobe!" said Sasuke through gritted teeth.

Kakashi continued smiling as he flipped a page in his book.

_An endearing duo indeed._

. . .

* * *

**Author's End Note:** I love Kakashi, I really do. If I ever desrcibed what was really in his trashy novel, then this story would definitely not be K+ rated.

Until next time ~~


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